my next £100 digital camera

[nplima]

Hi all,


a tech-clueless relative of mine needs a digital camera and I'm happy to give them mine while I go to the market for something slightly better. My current camera is a Pentax Optio M10 and I'm fairly happy with it, maybe could be happier with the colours when taking photos outdoors. I take most photos when travelling and have no big ambitions about photography.

Candidates in the sub £100 range are currently:
Fuji S5800 (http://www.ebuyer.com/product/131849) for £99
Samsung S760 (http://www.ebuyer.com/product/146555) for £49
Samsung S85, for £80, disappeared from catalog a few days ago, it's essentially another point&shoot camera with 5X optical zoom and 8 megapixel resolution.

must use:
SD card
AA batteries
I'm biased towards Samsung and against Sony

I'm thinking that carrying a bulky, 4x battery consuming camera like the Fuji may be a turn-off even admitting everything else about it is better than the other candidates. however, sometimes I wish I had a stronger zoom on my camera... that's why I might wait for the Samsung S85 to turn up again. Any other brands and models you'd suggest?

thanks.

 

[cleanup]

Sorry, but why do you want a camera that uses AA batteries? In my experience, anything that uses AAs will be larger, have less charge, and last half to a quarter as long as its lithium-ion counterpart. It's also cheaper, as you don't have to be feeding new batteries into the thing every couple of days. A good camera retailer will give you an extra rechargeable Li-ion (or two!), and if you know where to look, an extra one won't cost you very much.

Personally, I use a Samsung NV8, and I love it. I think they sell it over in Europe. Check it out! It has a great interface, is great at taking macro photos, plenty of as-you-shoot image adjustment options (like changing the coolness/warmness of the photo)... the touch-sensitive interface makes changing options a breeze.